Engineering News Blog

Engineering News

Latest news of interest to engineers. Sourced from GlobalSpec's Engineering News

Previous in Blog: Wind Power Enters Argentinean Energy Grid   Next in Blog: New Material Could Speed Development Of Hydrogen Powered Vehicles
Close
Close
Close
2 comments
Rate Comments: Nested

Government Use of Biometrics Still Raises Privacy Concerns

Posted October 08, 2008 10:01 AM

From CNET News.com:

Is the idea of widespread biometric data collection still too spooky to win over the American public? At some level, it's already becoming commonplace: California and some other states demand fingerprints from driver's license holders. The Verified Identity Pass program includes iris scans, as does the U.K's border control system. And prisoners have their blood forcibly drawn for a DNA sample. But more widespread use of biometrics, especially by the government, raises substantial privacy concerns that may alarm many Americans and prove difficult to resolve, panelists at a conference here said Tuesday.

Read the whole article

Reply

Interested in this topic? By joining CR4 you can "subscribe" to
this discussion and receive notification when new comments are added.
Guru
Engineering Fields - Manufacturing Engineering - United Kingdom - Member - Get things done!

Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: East Anglia, UK
Posts: 2003
Good Answers: 3
#1

Re: Government Use of Biometrics Still Raises Privacy Concerns

10/09/2008 4:34 AM

I'd be a lot happier if I thought I could trust the gov.com not to loose the info. The UK is pretty awful when it comes to data being stolen, either on discs, laptops, memory sticks or hacked e mails. What really bugs me is that they have clearly broken the data protection act, that they brought in, but never seem to get prosecuted. Grrr.

__________________
'The truth is out there' The lies are in your head.
Reply
Guru
New Zealand - Member - Interested in everything- see my Profile please APIX Pilot Plant Design Project - Member - Member Engineering Fields - Electrical Engineering - Member Engineering Fields - Power Engineering - Member Engineering Fields - Civil Engineering - Member Hobbies - Musician - Autoharp and Harmonica Hobbies - Hunting - Member Hobbies - Fishing - Member

Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Christchurch, (The Garden City), South Island, New Zealand
Posts: 4395
Good Answers: 230
#2

Re: Government Use of Biometrics Still Raises Privacy Concerns

10/09/2008 6:19 AM

The problem of retaining one's personal information is becoming more difficult each day.

Draconian illegal laws are passed, giving powers to Prime Ministers, Presidents etc far greater than those exercised by Hitler, Stalin or Mao.

Because most of the ramifications of those laws are against various Constitutions, Bill Of Rights, Magna Carta and the like, they are passed and classified as "Emergency Powers".

I have yet to see a Politician or Statesman who is not capable of the twin evils of both self-interest and misuse of power.

Sadly, the UK is amongst the worst of it, with over 5 million Security cameras in London alone, recording almost every aspect of visitors and inhabitants alike.

Warnings were sounded back in the early 1970's about the twin dangers of State Intrusion and the Database Society.

Worried? You should be very concerned.

Read more here: Thursday, January 31, 2008

"Sleepwalking into a surveillance society"

Don't forget to read the comments there too.

Kind Regards....

__________________
"The number of inventions increases faster than the need for them at the time" - SparkY
Reply
Reply to Blog Entry 2 comments

Previous in Blog: Wind Power Enters Argentinean Energy Grid   Next in Blog: New Material Could Speed Development Of Hydrogen Powered Vehicles
You might be interested in: Biometrics Software, Biometric Sensors

Advertisement